Workouts are Hard, So are Your Bones - Hopefully!

A few years back the Dairy Council came out with a campaign touting milk as the key for strong healthy bones.  They told you and me to drink our milk.  This is not a post talking about the benefits or fallacies regarding the industrialized dairy practices that give us our milk products.  But I'll say this, the milk we drink today is not the secret to a lifetime of healthy bones.  Nutritionally, you can probably get more calcium from leafy greens.  We must eat foods that give us Vitamins C & D, calcium, magnesium, and potassium to help us keep our bones strong, but I'm here to tell you that nutrition is not the key component.  The secret to strong, healthy bones is Exercise, you moving your body.  Healthy nutrition is necessary, but you can't do that alone, and it's not the key factor.

I recently began working with a new client, one who deals with Osteopenia, a precursor to osteoporosis.  Losing bone density is an issue for her, and it became my job to help formulate a plan to allow her to not only keep what bone density she has but to also develop more.  Osteoblasts are bone building cells that replace lost bone tissue in the body.  You see, your bone tissue is not much different that the tissue in your heart, muscle, and lungs.  To remain healthy, these tissues need to be stressed/they need to be worked/they need to be EXERCISED. 

As I dug around looking for what I needed to do to train someone with bone density issues, I realized that there was not a lot of info out there specifically targeting that.  I found general stuff, and then it hit me....What these people need is no different than what anyone out there really needs when it comes to physical exercise, they need to move a load against gravity.  Weight-bearing exercise gives us the best bone building benefits (weight-bearing being bodyweight, dumbbells, a loaded barbell, whatever).  These osteoblasts (bone cells) are stimulated when the muscles pull around the bones to produce human movement.  Now, we are all unique on our fitness journey.  We start at the basics and as we progress, we have to turn up the intensity.  It doesn't matter if you're 18 or 80 years old, the body is smart and adapts quickly.  Our exercise should be intense and should have variety.  The body tires of the same routine over and over.  It yawns and asks what's next....the more stress you put on your bones, the stronger they will become.  We need to continuously challenge our osteoblasts to stay on the positive side of bone density.  We should be smart with our training, paying attention to any injury or limitations, but always remembering that hard work builds strong bones. 

I found that people with Osteopenia (really anyone with bone density issues) have 3 main areas on their body where the major concern lies:  spine, hips, and wrists.  With my client, we are focusing on lunges and step-ups for her hips, squats for her spine, and a variety of presses for her wrists.  We also are using torso rotational exercises to strengthen her core and other exercises to improve and strengthen her balance. 

With these weight-bearing exercises I should distinguish one major criteria involved.  These movements should involve the athlete/exerciser pushing into the ground.  There has to be IMPACT, pushing their weight into the earth.  Unfortunately, people who hit the ellipticals and bikes do not get the same bone building benefits as people who run or do weight-bearing exercise.  IMPACT increases bone density.  There is a time and place for all modalities of fitness; so, if you have your doctor's or your own consent, push into the earth whenever possible.  If you can jump, jump...if you can run or sprint, do it, it you can move around a barbell, get after it.
With my client, we have found by really slowing down the tempo of the exercise that it maximizes the time under tension of her muscle tissue.  The time under tension also causes those bones to be under impact for that longer duration too.  This is something that we feel is beneficial for stimulating the production of more bone density for her.

So, remember, exercise makes the outside of your body look really good, but it also strengthens the framework on the inside too (Your Bones). And, this is a major important thing.
Have fun, move your body, be consistent with your exercise and good nutrition, and squeeze the people you love.

Have You Been Soaking Your Nuts?

I know, I know...You saw this title, and you're like, What the Heck is he talking about anyways?
For centuries, many different cultures all over the globe have soaked their grains, nuts, and seeds prior to consuming them. Why? To gain the maximal dietary nutrition from them.
You see, nature is smart and all nuts, seeds, and grains have an outer layer of protective armor called Bran.  This substance contains Phytates or Phytic acids that are enzyme inhibitors and toxic substances.  In nature, the phytic acid helps the nut (we'll use nut because we are soaking pecans right now) by preventing it from sprouting or germinating too early.  It shields the nut until the growing conditions are perfect.

Phytic acids can be problematic, they are also known as "Anti-Nutrients".
When we ingest them, they sit in our small intestine and will grab a hold of very important minerals like: calcium, iron, magnesium, copper, and especially, zinc (zinc is one of our main nutrients responsible for a strong, healthy immune system) and cause us not to absorb them.  This process can lead to nutrient deficiencies and even bone loss, and when talking about blocking zinc, can harm our immune defenses.

The enzyme inhibitors found in Phytic acid force the body to work so much harder in the digestive process just to produce the right enzymes to maintain proper digestive function.
The wisdom of traditional cultures teaches us that simply soaking these foods over night would breakdown the nutritional inhibitors and toxic substances found in the Phytates.  We essentially trick nature, causing the nut or seed to germinate, and bump up the nutrient profile considerably.
Modern farming practice usually puts the grain or seed on the table before its had an opportunity to germinate.

 We soak in glass containers.  Be careful not to use plastics. Soaking in plastic could leech some of the chemicals from the plastic into your food.
Soak nuts anywhere from 12 to 24 hours in room temp or warm water mixed with 2 teaspoons of sea salt.  You should really try to use filtered or purified water if you can.  
After soaking, rinse the nuts, pat them dry with a towel,  let them dry with room air, or stick them in a dehydrator or oven at a temp of 115 deg F (that seems to be the magic number). 
Soaking the nuts is a relatively easy process.  Soaking makes the nut more nutritious, easier to digest, and surprisingly a lot tastier.
Experiment for yourselves.

You're Stuck!!!! Why????: Trying to Understand Cortisol

Let's start off this article by saying that we are all beautiful and perfect in our own way.  The human body is a dynamic miracle that is amazing to watch function.  The goal of this article is not to make you think or feel that you should look a certain way in order to be healthy and beautiful.  But, rather to educate you on a behind the scenes look at what stress can do to your body. 
Here's a scenario:
You work out on a regular basis, but you're not getting any stronger, faster, and can't tell if your fitness level has improved.  You go on a diet, but you still want to lose that last 10 lbs or get rid of that obnoxious belly fat.  You have been busting your ass and these improvements just aren't happening.  You may feel like a hopeless case, and you throw in the towel......or would like to but don't want to be labeled a quitter.  Why is this happening? What's going on?
Here's the deal, you are over-stressed.  This may sound unbelievable to some of you, but it's true.  So, take a deep breath, relax, and soak in some knowledge.

First of all, let's meet the hormone Cortisol.  It is known as the "Stress Hormone" and produced by the Adrenal cortex in times of stress (you've all heard "Fight or Flight").  Cortisol is released in response to stress as it preps the body for what it feels is an IMMEDIATE threat. Cortisol suppresses our immune system and spares glucose for the Brain and our Muscles so we can survive. Honestly, Cortisol is our friend, he's a good guy.  We need Cortisol.  Besides helping our body cope with an immediate threat, it is a key component in proper glucose energy metabolism, helps to regulate our blood pressure, regulates proper insulin release for blood sugar maintenance, helps the immune system to operate properly, and makes sure we have a functioning inflammatory response.  The problem arises due to the simple fact that our modern world has us over-stressed.  The body is perfectly willing and able to handle an urgent, quick crisis.  Then, it should be allowed a long recovery period to reset and rebuild.  This is fine under perfect conditions, like maybe back when a caveman encountered a threat in the wild or something.  He ran for his life, made it, and recuperated in his cave or mountaintop.  He didn't grab a cup of coffee and work until 2am.  For us, we live in a world where we are constantly being stressed by things we willingly do to ourselves: by not getting enough sleep, eating a crappy diet, relying on medications to treat symptoms, over-training with our exercise, being in abusive relationships, taking on too much of a workload at work, not ever getting outside to get a little sunshine, and the list goes on.......there are countless things that indirectly stress us too, but the point is that we are dealing with Chronic Stress and our bodies are unable to reset and return to normal. 

When you are under chronic stress and Cortisol levels remain high bad things can happen:  impaired cognitive function (you can't think straight), suppressed thyroid function, high blood pressure, weakened immune system, blood sugar imbalances like hyperglycemia, decreased bone density, and increased Abdominal fat. 
Interestingly enough, the body doesn't differentiate the stressor....It doesn't matter whether the stress is psychological, physical, or emotional.  It will all create a stress response in the body. 
And chronically elevated Cortisol levels tell the body to preserve body fat.  It is programmed to handle this threat and the body needs energy to do that.  If Cortisol levels are too high, it can even eventually lead to the erosion of muscle mass, further weakening your body.  Elevated Cortisol levels tell the body it needs energy.  It wants quick energy, there is a spike in your appetite, and you want sugary foods.  This explains why we ALL have these cravings for "comfort foods".  There is such a thing as stress eating and eating these high fat, sugary, processed foods do relieve stress (there is a reward), but it is short-lived and gets you into a pattern of having to constantly do it (it's an addiction).  You cannot out-exercise poor food choices and eating these types of foods increase your visceral/abdominal fat and increase you chance of developing Cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes. 
So how do you know your Cortisol levels are high? I pulled this from a good article by Dr. Lissa Rankin called, "10 Signs You May Have Way Too Much Cortisol". 

1. You have chronic back and head aches.  High Cortisol levels and Adrenal fatigue can raise Prolactin levels, which increases the body's sensitivity to pain.

2.  You aren't sleeping well.  Cortisol levels are supposed to drop naturally at night. The problem is that a lot of us remain over-stimulated at night by lights, tv, night job, and other stressors.  We don't allow our bodies to come down.

3.  Even when you sleep well, you are still tired.

4.  You're gaining weight, especially around the Abdomen (even while "eating well" and exercising).
Remember, Cortisol spikes the appetite.  High levels have you craving sugary, processed foods.  Mixed with the fact high levels of Cortisol also have you preserving body fat, this makes it hard to lose belly fat or those last 5 to 10 lbs. 

5.  You catch colds and infections easily.

6.  You crave unhealthy foods

7.  Your sex drive is in the crapper.  Stress hormones counteract the Sex hormones.  If you're body is in a state of fight or flight, it's probably not thinking about making a little romance......

8.  Your GI System is acting up due to the fact that this system is sensitive to the stress hormones.

9.  You feel anxious often.

10.  You feel depressed; Cortisol suppresses Serotonin, the body's feel-good neurotransmitter.

 Good news, my friends, there are things we can do (yes, we; we are all faced with stress).  First things first we need to realize that we do deal with stress.  A lot of it we control and it comes in physical, mental, and emotional forms.  Lack of sleep, our jobs, too much exercise, and the food and drink we put in our bodies can be forms of stress.  Just like we have a "fight or flight" response in our body that is automatic, we have a relaxation response too.  "Relaxation Response" was a term developed by Dr. Herbert Benson in 1975.  We have a complex nervous system that has to be relaxed to work properly.  If we are chronically stressed, our nervous system is unable to activate natural repair mechanisms and heal.  We can help this relaxation response numerous ways, and here are a few examples:

• Meditation
• Yoga
• Listening to Calming Music
• Taking a Hot Bath
• Incorporating an Exercise program into our routine
• Getting a good nights sleep or taking a nap
• Drink Black Tea (antioxidants)
• Laugh regularly
• Get a Massage
• Do something Spiritual
• Chew Gum (calming and increases Brain blood flow)
• Breathing Exercises

Cortisol is a very important body hormone.  If Cortisol levels are constantly high, it leads to bad health problems.  Health practitioners can check these levels for you.  Take a look at your lifestyle, see if things need to change, and do what you can to feel good. No one knows your body like you do; so tune in and notice where stress is impacting your life.  These recommendations above are all great things that can be fun and enjoyable too.  Sometimes we just need to unplug, relax, and slow things down a bit.  Enjoy your life and do the best you can to feel good and have your body work in the condition it was intended to. 

Be Well
Keith and Jami

Let's Get Intense

Time is such a precious, often limited, commodity for so many of us.  We live such fast-paced lives that some days it seems there are not enough hours in the day.  Don't allow this "busy-ness" to be your excuse for not having a fitness routine in place for your health and wellness.  You have one body that is going to carry you around while you're on this planet, so you gotta use it.

If TIME has been the roadblock for you getting into shape then maybe I have a perfect style of exercise for you.  It's been talked about a lot lately it seems and it's known as High Intensity Intermittent (or Interval) Training [HIIT].  High Intensity Interval Training is a style I much prefer because it's been proven to give you the best of both worlds.  It is beneficial to the Anaerobic Energy System that allows you to do short bursts of intense, explosive exercise, and it also improves the exerciser's Aerobic Capacity (the ability to sustain minimal efforts for extended time periods - think jogging).  High Intensity Interval Training taxes the muscles involved in the particular exercise and equally stresses the Cardiovascular System.  The general model of High Intensity Interval Training has an exerciser do short bursts of "All Out Effort" intense exercise followed by minimal rest.  This sequence is followed for a set amount of time.  This "All Out Effort" is relative to the individual and will improve over time if the exercise routines are consistent.   I like to call this form of workout "running for your life".  Doing this type of workout is great for the heart and lungs and  also great for the metabolism because it causes the release of muscle building and fat burning hormones:  human growth hormone and testosterone.  This allows you to increase lean muscle mass and shred fat.
It's also great for the mind because it helps you gain confidence knowing that you can push your body when needed.  It causes you to realize, know, and trust that you have a strong body.
Back in the mid 90's, a physiology professor from Japan, Izumi Tabata, did studies for the Japanese Speed Skating Team showing that High Intensity Interval Training was superior in results to moderate anaerobic (weight) training and aerobic/cardiovascular training done independently.  His method, known now as Tabata, is 8 cycles of 20 seconds of work followed by 10 seconds of rest.  That adds up to 4 minutes of intense exercise that will challenge even the fittest individual.  It could be one movement done 8 times, 4 movements gone through twice, whatever.  Tabata may be the most popular high intensity model out there.....but there are so many directions you can take it.  You can get as creative as you'd like with interval training.  You could set up 10 exercises and go hard on each one for 40 seconds with 20 seconds rest that could allow you to transition to the next exercise.  That's 10 minutes to get through all 10.  That in itself could be a great workout, but depending on where you are with your fitness, you could cycle through that 2 maybe 3 times.  And if time was your issue, even on the long side, that would take you about 30 minutes.  I'm just proving the point that time doesn't have to be the limiting factor.  You honestly can get a great workout completed in as little as 15 minutes.
And I think another note should be made that Anaerobic Exercise can include sprints and body-weight movements, which also shows that to accomplish workouts in this fashion, you don't even have to be in a gym.
Remember, the brain can be the limiting factor.  I'm not saying don't use your brain, I'm just reminding you to believe in yourself.  Our bodies are amazing machines.  Push yourself a bit.  The body needs a bit of an uncharted stimulus to make it stronger.  Maybe some High Intensity Interval Training is exactly what you need.

As always, don't go about this blindly.  If you feel you need help to get you going, contact a reputable fitness professional or a friend you know and trust.
Get Movin'!

Keith

You're Not a Lion, You Gotta Limber Up Before the Kill

We have over 200 bones in our bodies (206 to be exact).  Around these bones are strategically placed ligaments, tendons, and muscle tissues driven by a precise nervous system.
When we get in the gym to put our bodies through an intense, vigorous workout, it is imperative to go through some variation of warm-up drills.  This serves the purpose to "wake up" the Central Nervous System (CNS) so that it is ready to stimulate muscle contraction when the heavy lifting starts.

Now, before doing a workout or run, you guys may have some smart-ass friend that takes a very funny Woody Harrelson line from the movie Zombieland saying, "do you ever see a lion limber up before it takes down a gazelle?"
It's meant to be funny but a question that got me thinking a bit.... No, we don't see that in the wild.  And, why not? Simple, we are not lions.  Our bodies are not put together like a lions; our nervous system circuitry is not identical to a lion's.  Maybe one day, long ago, our bodies were equipped for that....to pounce at a moments notice on a consistant basis.  Not anymore, jack. We sit at our desks for hours out of the day, sit in our ultra-comfortable car/truck seats, and probably exhibit sub-optimal posture throughout the day.  Our hips are locked up in a tight position for the majority of the day and before you "bring out that inner Lion", you gotta Limber Up, or there's a good chance you're gonna be laid up, injured.

Your warm-up doesn't have to take 20-30 minutes.  It needs to be long enough for you to have broken a bit of a sweat and to have moved your body through some of the ways that will have mimicked some of the weighted movements you will be doing for your workout of the day (i.e. Dynamic Warm-up)*.  This could take you as little as 5 minutes.

*Stay tuned for a follow-up post on important distinctions between Dynamic and Static Stretching

It is smart for this warm-up to include core specific exercises such as:  planks, push-ups, torso/spinal rotations, body-weight squatting, glute-hip bridge, use of a suspension trainer like a TRX,  etc.  The core is the "Action Center" of the body.  It's purpose is to contract around the spine and protect it during functional movements.  Every movement we do in a workout will to some degree involve our core musculature; so, make sure you make it a point to isolate the core in the warm-up with a plank or hip bridge.  We want to make sure we wake the core up early, it will produce a more enjoyable workout with better performance.   

Keith

Taming Resolution Euphoria: Back to the Basics

I see it year after year....January brings in gym goers in the droves, drunk off the excitement of their New Year's Resolution to implement a new fitness program.  They start off with full steam, have a routine for a month or two, and then fade away because other priorities take place of the gym.
The idea of better physical fitness and a healthier you is GREAT, but it's hard work.  It's take some sacrifice.  It takes commitment.  Like I told a client the other night while she was lunging, if this was easy, everybody would be in here doing this.  People get excited about what the gym can offer them:  the better body, the strength gains, the confidence, the overall feeling better........but you don't receive these things overnight.  We live in a "Drive-Thru Window" society that expects things quickly, and if they don't receive things quickly, they forget about it and move on.  This is one of the main reasons I feel like those January crowds in the gyms thin out after Spring Break and maybe even a little before.
The results don't come as quickly as they wish and they give up, or they workout up to a scheduled event (wedding, class reunion, beach trip, etc.) and once the event has come and gone, they're out, and don't work out again until they have another excuse to get back into the gym.
So how do we succeed with these resolutions? First of all, we have to set realistic goals.  Be true to yourself.  Who knows you better than you?  We need to develop a routine, a pattern, a plan.  It would serve us well to team up with others.  We need accountability partner/partners, maybe even people who have been in our shoes before and can help us adapt to the changes we have created (CrossFit gyms have this aspect locked up tight).  These are basic steps we can take that can be applied to many resolutions actually.  The two I'm thinking of here are starting a fitness routine and making dietary changes, both allow us to feel better and fit better in our clothes. 
Inevitably, for most people, problems arise........
You miss a week or two of working out, things get busy, or you go on vacation.  You start thinking, I'm screwed, I haven't worked out in so long, there's no use in going back.  You give up.  Or, you've been so diligent in your new found healthy way of eating, and then BAM! You have a wild night of pizza and ice cream, you go crazy with it, and have fun.  You wake up the next day and you think what's the use and you give up on your healthy eating ways.
You need to realize a couple of things: you are human and things like this are going to happen.
We live busy lives, we get cravings.....you roll with the punches, you wake up the next day and you recommit to your heathy ways.
So, keep it simple.  Set goals. Start small and realistic.  Grab an accountability partner and begin accomplishing your listed goals.  If things get off course, re-evaluate, re-commit, and get rolling again.  Nobody is perfect, life isn't perfect, you fall off, get up, dust yourself off, and get back in there!

Where Are You?

People, I hope this post finds you all doing well! My eyes have been opened further with the help of my beautiful partner and side-kick, Mrs. Jami Lynn McCormack.  She has again shown me more evidence as to the importance of optimal nutrition and a functioning, healthy, steam-engine body.
I recently, under Jami's instruction/persuasion/motivation, completed the Whole30 Challenge
( http://whole9life.com/category/whole-30/ ), a month-long nutrition lifestyle eliminating all sugar from your diet unless it comes from fruit or vegetables.  Maybe this seems somewhat easy to you, but my friend I'm here to tell you, so many products out there have man-made, artificial sugar, sugar-cane, sugar in the raw, whatever....sugar, to make it sweet and taste so good to our impressionable palates.  Like you I'm sure, I like sweet, I like things that taste good, and once I opened my mind to this challenge, I discovered that there was a lot for me to eat (really).  And, frankly, very happy about the food I was throwing down.  I still had access to my bananas, my sweet potatoes, all of my proteins, but quickly discovered I needed to make sure I had my good fats too.  I would get hungry pretty quickly after my meals and Jami helped me understand I needed to be consuming good fats like:  avacados, nuts, olive and coconut oils with my meals to insure satiation.
I took away from this experience the fact that this way of eating really works for me.  Physically, I felt very good with my energy and my body responded very well (I've never really been this lean and cut in all my years of working out).
Mentally, my clarity and focus seemed generally good on a daily basis and I feel like my quality of sleep was consistently good.  I could expand on this more, but these are highlights.

There is a lot of talk out there about sugar and it's negative effects on our health, and I'm not going to get into that here, but what I can say pretty confidently is that sugar is something I need in my diet on a very seldom basis.  I know my self-experimentation was only for a month, but I'm gearing up for another run at the month-long challenge.  Here lately, I've been doing my best to string along days of no sugar here and there.  I feel like it's going well too.

Doing this challenge, I feel like I've opened up, put myself out there a bit, and discovered something new and very beneficial for my own health and well-being.  I had the benefit of Jami's instruction, motivation, education, and coaching.  For whatever reasons it has taken me a while to listen to her words, but I'm where I am now and the results speak very loud and clear to me.
Jami and I come from different backgrounds - me:  I played sports growing up and now am a personal trainer; fitness is my passion and she draws from that - Jami: did not grow up with sports and fitness but her strength and passion is in the nutrition and Holistic Health arena, and I draw from that.  We are a team, a partnership, and I feel lucky for that.  Because she didn't have a sporting background, she struggled with the fitness stuff.  I write her programs and help keep her motivated and supported there.  My struggles over the years has always been the nutrition side of things.  My thinking in the past was that I could always eat whatever I wanted as long as I worked out (typical dude thinking).  Oh how wrong I was on this; so, I lean heavily on her knowledge when it comes to the nutrition aspect of wellness and she leans on me for the fitness.  With that being said, know and recognize where you need help and don't be afraid to ask for it.

So, I asked the question in the title, "Where Are You?".   Is there something that's been on your mind in relation to your nutrition or fitness? Listen to these words you're reading in this message and just get started with figuring out what works for you.  Take my stepping out there as a jumping point for you.  These cookie-cutter models out there set people up to fail, and it's going to take courage and self-experimentation to figure out what works for you.  Find an accountability partner, use Jami and I as your motivation/inspiration, whatever you have to do to get started.  The ultimate goal for us as people is to function at our most optimal, healthy way on a daily basis.  We want to feel our best so that we can get the most out of ourselves and be the best for those around us.
I hope you get started on your journey to figure out where you are and where you're going.  Find what works for you and your unique body.

Take this quote to heart:

"A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step."     Lao-tzu

Be Well,
Keith and Jami